Entries in International Perspectives
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Helping Men Get Help is a unique course that’s been designed for professionals who want to help more men and boys access public services and social projects. Designed and presenting by leading UK Men’s Health Consultant Glen Poole.

Who is HELPING MEN GET HELP for?

The course is designed for service providers in areas such as health promotion, parenting, education, social work, mental health, support groups, community workers and youth workers. The course if for anyone concerned with helping men and boys get better access to and outcomes from their existing services, or anyone interested in developing new services and projects for men and boys.

Globally, men die five years earlier than women and are 50% more likely to die between the ages of 15 and 60. In countries classified as ‘least developed’ and ‘less developed’ by the United Nations, adult mortality fell faster among women than among men between 1992 and 2012. In every part of the world, men’s health outcomes are substantially worse than women’s yet this inequality has as yet received little national, regional or global attention from health policymakers or healthcare providers.

A new organisation, Global Action on Men’s Health has therefore been launched today, at the start of International Men’s Health Week 2014, with an urgent call to improve the poor state of men’s health in every part of the world.

Backed by eight organisations based in four continents, Global Action on Men’s Health (GAMH) wants the World Health Organisation and other international public health bodies, as well as individual governments, to acknowledge the scale of the problems facing men and boys and to take sustained action to tackle them. This work should sit alongside continuing action to improve the health of women and girls.

Large numbers of men are subjected to Sexual and Domestic Violence (SDV). For example, official statistics from Australia estimate that 336,000 men (4 per cent of the male population) have been victims of sexual violence and 448,000 men (5.3 per cent) have been subjected to partner violence since they turned 15 years old. Male victims often share similar security needs with female victims. However, there are also gender-specific barriers to accessing security and justice, and the issue of SDV remains especially shrouded in silence and misconceptions when it comes to male victims. A literature review indicated that while academic research on these topics does exist and several NGOs have recorded relevant good practices, there is currently no single document where this information is synthesised in such a way that it can be readily used by the security sector. This guidance note is therefore designed to serve as a tool to enable security sector institutions to provide a more effective gender-sensitive approach to preventing and responding to SDV against men.

The best ad about male victims of domestic violence we've ever seen. Already going viral with almost 1.5 million views.

40% of domestic violence is against men in the UK. #ViolenceIsViolence, no matter who it's aimed at. The Mankind helpline costs just £35,000 per year to run, by donating a few £ you will help us to support men suffering in this way get the support they need. Please donate here: https://mydonate.bt.com/charities/mankindinitiative - plus follow us @mankindinit

Authors Susan Beaton, Suicide Prevention Consultant and Dr Peter Forster, University of Worcester, UK recently published an article about men's suicide for the Australian Psychology Society. Titled 'Insights into men's suicide' the article covers such ranging issues as reasons for gender disparity, correlates of suicide in men (eg relationship breakdown and alcohol use) and treatment and prevention. The conclusion of the article quotes Dr John Ashfield (Director, AIMHS) to make reference to necessary contributing factors when attempting to understand suicide in men:

"The practice of blaming men for ‘holding in their emotions’ and ‘not seeking help’, and calls for changes to the traditional male role, sounds plausible but is, at best, lazy and simplistic. It is a view that conveniently avoids dealing with the more complex issues of male suicide, and is one that is ignorant of biology, and offensively dismissive of the lived reality of most men’s lives – what society expects of them, and what they must try to be to meet these expectations."

Men's Health Australia applauds the Australian Psychology Society for advocating a social determinants approach to men's suicide. The article can be found here.